I am looking for some creative ways to internally publicize the corporate core values. Do you have any ideas on how to communicate core values to the organization?

– Pam

ANSWER

Advice by Yvonne Buchanan

Dear Pam:

I commend you on recognizing the importance of communicating core values. Here are a few suggestions:

Devote a different month to each corporate value. Lead each meeting with a discussion of that month’s value. Then have each department make suggestions as to what it can do to exemplify that value.

Have “value thought for the day” announced over the P.A. system or on voice mail or e-mail. At the end of the period, have employees vote on which employee most exemplifies that value. Call them the “Service Champion” or whatever the value is, and hold a meeting announcing their election. In the meeting, explain why he or she demonstrates that value. Then ask them to be responsible for a one-year period for that value in the work place.

Give them free rein as to how they will champion that value and support their suggestions, recommendations, etc. Or have them appoint Value X ambassadors for each department. Each year, hold new elections and appoint new champions and ambassadors.

Print your values on T-shirts, on a plaque in your lobby, in your employee newsletter. You can even shake it up and have fun. Have “recite the value” pop quizzes where a costumed person approaches random employees and asks them to recite the values. Each person that does so correctly will get a prize (movie tickets, latte certificates, etc.). When people are enjoying themselves, learning improves.

At each quarterly meeting, recognize the accomplishments of the value champions and ambassadors, and highlight any noteworthy achievements along those lines.

In short, have fun with it. Good luck, Pam. Let us know how it goes.

Yvonne Buchanan’

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Yvonne Buchanan is a 20-year veteran of public relations, marketing and advertising. She teaches public relations courses online for career changers, freelancers and students through The PR Academy www.learnpr.com and is co-founder of Real-World PR www.realworldpr.com , a public relations information provider for small businesses. Real-World PR offers public relations toolkits (manual/CD combinations) that allow small business owners to create and maintain their own public relations programs.